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STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT
Not applicable.
Not applicable.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of cleaning devices, and more particularly to a self-wringing mop.
2. Description of Related Art
As can be seen by reference to the following U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,814,527; 2,185,502; 2,495,846 and 4,178,650, the prior art is replete with myriad and diverse wringer mops.
The device known as the self-wringing mop has been developed for years. Some of its variations have been sold successfully in the market. The variations can be divided into two categories. The design of the first category has a piece of sponge as the absorbent mop head. This design is only good for light-duty cleaning jobs because a sponge is not suitable for picking up large quantities of dirt at one time, hence the user has to rinse and wring it many times to complete a cleaning job. Also, a sponge is easily worn out of rough surfaces. The design of the second category has a mop head made of some threadlike absorbent fabric. The threadlike fabric can pick up more dirt than a sponge and is less likely to wear out. Therefore, it is a better choice for heavy-duty cleaning jobs. However, the prior designs of the self-wringing mop using threadlike fabric have the following drawbacks.
1. In the prior designs of the self-wringing mop, the mop has a sleeve axially and rotatably movable on the mop stick. To wring the mop, the sleeve is slid up and is rotated on the mop stick. The result is that the mop fabric is wrapped around the stick and is pressed against the stick. As the mop fabric is wrapped around the stick, the mop head will contaminate the lower part of the mop stick with the rinsing water. With the sleeve being slide up and down repeatedly in the mopping process, the rinsing water will be spread out gradually on the mop stick until all the area of the stick surface where the sleeve is slid on is contaminated. Thus, it is unavoidable for the user""s hands to be contaminated.
2. In the prior design of the self-wringing mop, the mopping fabric is not twisted in a natural way like a towel being twisted by hand, but instead is wrapped around the mop stick. It is common sense that a piece of fabric dries less while being twisted with a hard object wrapped in it than being twisted alone. The reason is that in the latter case, the fabric has a smaller diameter and a fabric with a smaller diameter can be dried with a small twisting force. Also, in the latter case, the fabric being twisted is tightened more evenly due to the overall softness of the fabric. Moreover, since the fabric is wrapped around the mop stick, the friction between the stick and the fabric will be against the twisting movement of the fabric. The twisting force that the user applied to the fabric in wringing the mop will be counterbalanced by the friction. As a result, the further a section of the mopping fabric is from the rotating sleeve in the wringing process, the poorer the drying result for the section will be. Thus, the prior self-wringing mops are difficult to wring, particularly for those who have weak hand strength. As a result, the mop head is not adequately dried.
3. As described in 1 above for the prior designs of the self-wringing mop, the mop head contaminates the mop stick. Therefore, the mopping fabric has to be relatively short although the longer mopping fabric is highly desirable for the better mopping effect, since otherwise a large percentage of the surface of the mop stick will be heavily contaminated. Another reason for the mopping fabric to be relatively short is, as described in 2 above, that the friction between the stick and the fabric counter balances the twisting force the user applies to the fabric. Thus, the part of the fabric that is relatively far away from the sleeve will be poorly dried. If a very long mopping fabric is mounted on the mop, it Will be practically impossible to be dried properly.
4. As described in 2 above, the prior self-wringing mops are difficult to wring. Additionally, the method of wringing the mop is cumbersome and time consuming. The wringing of the mop requires changes of the grip. When the grip is shifted from one grip to another, the fabric will bounce back and lose its prior tightness. The overall difficulties in wringing the mop restrict the possibility of using a thicker mop head in the mop.
5. The combination of drawbacks 3 and 4 above make it difficult for a prior self-wringing mop to have a large-size mop head and, therefore, restricts its use in heavy-duty jobs.
All of the aforementioned prior art constructions are uniformly deficient with respect to their failure to provide a simple, efficient and practical self-wringing mop.
As a consequence of the foregoing situation, there has existed a longstanding need for a new and improved self-wringing mop and the provision of such a construction is a stated objective of the present invention.
The purpose of the present invention is to provide a solution to the above-described problems. The design of the present invention introduces a mop structure substantially different from all the prior designs. The new design includes a mop stick and an xe2x80x9cHxe2x80x9d shape frame with one end slidably but not rotatably attached to the mop stick. The mop stick has an oval shape cross-section. The special shape of the mop stick prevents the frame from rotating on the mop stick. There is a rotating offset or a shaft attached to the other end of the frame. The shaft has a driving handle perpendicular to it. By rotating the driving handle, the shaft can be turned on the frame. The mop head has two ends. One end is attached to the lower end of the shaft. The other end is attached to a short shaft fastened on the lower end of the mopping stick.
When the frame is lifted up, the mop stick will slide down by gravity. Since the mopping fabric is fastened between the lower end of the mopping stick and the lower end of the rotating offset, it will stretch out like a tightened rope. Then the user can wring the mop by holding the frame while turning the driving handle of the rotating offset. The mopping fabric will be twisted in a way just like a towel being twisted by hand. Instead of being wrapped on the mop stick, the mopping fabric will be twisted alone without touching the mop stick in the wringing process.
When the frame is slid down, the mop stick and the rotating offset will have their lower ends positioned side-by-side and the mopping fabric will form a ready-to-use xe2x80x9cUxe2x80x9d shape mop head.
The present invention has the following advantages over the prior designs.
1. Since the mopping fabric is not wrapped around the mop stick but is twisted like a towel being twisted by hand, a much smaller strength is needed to wring the mop and the drying effect is greatly improved. Also, since there is no friction counter balancing the twisting force, a much longer mopping fabric can be used without having a negative impact on the drying effect.
2. Since the mopping fabric is not wrapped around the mop stick but is apart from the mop stick in the wringing process, the rinsing water will not contaminate the mop stick. Thus, the user""s hand will be kept clean.
3. Since the mopping head does not contaminate the mopping stick and the wringing mechanism guaranties the great drying effect no matter how long the mopping fabric will be, there is very little limitation for the length of the mopping fabric. Thus, the mopping fabric can be made very long to achieve the best mopping result.
4. Since the mopping fabric is not wrapped around the mop stick but is twisted like a towel being twisted by hand, the drying effect is greatly improved. Also, the driving handle perpendicular to the rotating offset makes it easy to apply a greater driving torque in twisting the mopping fabric. Thus, mop heads with greater diameters can be easily dried with the wringing mechanism.
5. The combination of advantages 3 and 4 above makes it possible for a self-wringing mop to have a long and thick, large-size mop head. Thus, in addition to the light-duty use, a self-wringing mop can also be used for heavy-duty jobs.
6. By rotating the driving handle of the rotating offset in a continuous circular manner, the wringing of the mop is simple, easy and fast without the inconvenience of changes of the grip.
7. Due to the structure of the mop, the mopping fabric will not tangle up. Thus, the fabric can be made simply as a coil of threads without the extra complexity of some anti-tangle designs occurring in the designs of some prior self-wringing mops.
8. The fact that the mop can have a mop head substantially larger than the mop heads of prior self-wringing mops does not mean that it cannot have a smaller mop head for household use. Based on the same design, a mop of a reduced size can be made to have smaller mop head. Then due to the efficiency of the wringing mechanism, there will be much improved wringing effect with less hand strength required to wring the mop.